Pharmacy Week in Review: 2018 Next Generation Pharmacist Awards, Brain Lymphatic Vessels' Role in MS

A look at last week's top stories in the world of pharmacy.

Transcript

Nicole Grassano, Host:

Hello and welcome to the

Pharmacy Times

News Network. I’m Nicole Grassano your host for our Pharmacy Week in Review.

Visit Pharmacy Times.com for coverage this weekend of the 2018 National Community Pharmacist Association’s annual convention in Boston. While we are in Beantown,

Pharmacy Times

will co-host with Parata Systems the 2018 Next Generation Pharmacist awards.

These awards honor remarkable pharmacists, student pharmacists, technicians, and industry advocates who are chosen from 10 categories, including Civic Leader, Entrepreneur, Future Pharmacist, Health-System Pharmacist, and Rising Star. Three finalists were chosen in each category, and finalist winners will be announced tonight at a gala dinner, along with one winner who will be named the 2018 Next Generation Pharmacist.

All health care professionals should receive an annual influenza vaccine to prevent the spread of illness among their colleagues and patients and reduce the number of sick days taken by health care personnel, according to the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices,

Contemporary Clinic

reported. Surveys concluded that strategies to increase workplace immunization, such as requiring

vaccination

or promoting free onsite vaccines, lead to increased vaccination rates, according to the

CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

The CDC surveyed 2,265 health care professionals to determine how many were vaccinated during the 2017-2018 flu season and concluded that 74.8% had received a flu vaccine. These data were consistent with data collected during the past 4 flu seasons, according to the CDC.

New research has found that lymphatic vessels surrounding the brain may play a crucial role in the development and progression of multiple sclerosis,

Specialty Pharmacy Times

reported. The vessels may also play a key role in other neuro-inflammatory diseases and brain infections as well.

Researchers from the University of Virginia School of Medicine found that the vessels appear to carry previously unknown messages from the brain to the immune system that ultimately trigger the symptoms of MS. By targeting the lymphatic vessels surrounding the brain, the researchers were able to impede the development of MS in a mouse model using a number of strategies to block or destroy the vessels, effectively decreasing the number of destructive immune cells capable of causing paralysis.

Pharmacists may get more questions about Alka-Seltzer Plus Maximum Strength Cough & Mucus DM if their patients have seen a new commercial for the OTC medication. In the spot, called “Meeting” a man has to take a work meeting at home while he is sick. But then his day gets much worse when his violent cough sends his laptop to the floor, and the employees in the meeting get a direct shot of him in his lovely red heart boxers.

According to the commercial, Alka-Seltzer Plus Maximum Strength Cough & Mucus DM can provide relief to those with coughing and mucus congestion when taken regularly as suggested.

For more great coverage and practical information for today’s pharmacist, visit our website and sign up for our Daily eNews. And don’t forget to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Thanks for watching our Pharmacy Week in Review. I’m Nicole Grassano at the

Pharmacy Times

News Network.